Leap of Faith
by Aleia15
Summary: Ichigo has problems adapting to the peaceful days after the war. However, they won't be peaceful for long. GrimmjowIchigo
1. Prologue

**Leap of Faith**

Prologue

Aizen was dead.

For some reason the knowledge of that fact brought Ichigo less satisfaction than he expected, but the truth was Aizen was finally dead.

So were many others.

They had managed to avoid most of the human casualties, moving Karakura to a temporary location had been a good idea; however that had not spared countless lives, Shinigami and Arrancar alike.

He looked around at the ruins that were the replica of his town, debris and lifeless corpses liberally strewn on the streets, blood and dust covering the ground everywhere he looked. Somehow his entire vision was red and white, as if looking through a bloody mist.

Ichigo heard someone calling him in the distance, his voice faint and far away distorted by the white noise filling his head. He turned to look and saw Grimmjow shouting at him, way closer than he expected judging by how distant his voice sounded.

Ichigo shook his head, blinking rapidly. There was something wrong with his senses. He'd probably received a harder blow to the head than he thought.

"What's wrong with you, Kurosaki?" Grimmjow was saying, his brows rushing together in something like concern. But that was wrong; Grimmjow couldn't be worried about him.

He probably had a bad concussion.

With a great effort, Ichigo managed to stand, looking around and seeing small pockets of enemies still fighting, the news of Aizen's demise obviously not having reached most of them. But the war was over, without the head the body was just moving in autopilot until it finally fell as well.

"Get away from here, Grimmjow," he heard himself saying, the strange feeling of detachment making it sound as if the words were coming from someone else.

Grimmjow's strange expression turned into a scowl. "What the fuck are you talking about, Shinigami?"

He gestured at their surroundings trying to find the words to express the idea he wasn't even sure he was having. It was frustrating and he needed some time to clear his head before he could form a coherent thought.

He didn't have it.

Ichigo tried again. "Get the fuck away, now!" he shouted, his hands trying to encompass everything around them. "Go! Now!"

Grimmjow was on him in a second, grabbing the front of his clothes and pulling him against his body. "What's your problem, Shinigami? Don't need me now you've won?

Ichigo shook his head, glaring. "Not won, not yet," he grated through clenched teeth.

Grimmjow narrowed his eyes, looking at Azien's corpse on the ground. "He's dead, Kurosaki. Tousen and Gin too. You've won."

"No," Ichigo took a deep breath, pointing at the groups still engaged in the battle. "They won't stop until every single hollow is dead." And that was the truth, what he had been trying to say in his confused state. Grimmjow needed to leave before some Taichou forgot he had been by Ichigo's side all that time and disposed of him. "Get Nell and whoever else the fuck you want and fuck off from here. Open a Garganta and leave. Now!" He gave him a push.

Grimmjow dug his heels, stubborn to the end. "I'll beat them."

"No! Leave!" Grimmjow had no chance against the remaining Taichous, not in his state after fighting Gin. He was lucky to have survived that one; another would surely finish him off.

Grimmjow looked like he wanted to protest, he looked around taking stock of the situation. The reality of the mess he was in probably clashing against his willingness to kill everyone there. With a scowl he turned to Ichigo and pressed their lips together, the taste of blood and grime and desperation filling their mouths.

"Goodbye Ichigo," he said before disappearing.

"Goodbye Grimmjow," Ichigo said to the empty space he had occupied the previous second, not letting his exhausted body fall to the ground until he saw a Garganta opening and several figures going through it.

With a relieved sigh he closed his eyes and let darkness claim him.

…


	2. Part I

**Part I**

If someone had told Ichigo there would come a day he would miss the war, he would have taken the unfortunate soul to the closest loony bin, after beating the shit out of them.

But the truth was he really missed those days.

Not the death. One would have to be insane and more than a little sadistic to miss the senseless waste of life the Winter War had been. What he missed were the fights, and the excitement and the company of his friends and reluctant allies.

Compared to that, his current life was boring as hell.

University occupied most of his time, studying so he could carry on with the duties of Kurosaki Clinic and help the living as well as the dead. He also hung out with his friends when he had time to spare; his living friends since there wasn't even a token Shinigami at Karakura now. They didn't need to assign anyone to the town where Kurosaki and his friends lived. The rest of his spare time he employed in Shinigami duties, performing Soul Burials and dealing with the few Hollows that dared enter his territory.

Not that there were many of those. He even missed the ugly sons of bitches and their little warm-up fights, but for some reason Hollows seemed to steer clear of his path.

Now they had their hard-won peace, Ichigo didn't know what to do with it.

He knew he wasn't the only one having trouble adapting to the calm and happy days. He had stopped seeing Ishida and Chad for more than a night out since they all entered University and Orihime seemed to have withdrawn into a world of her own after their return from Hueco Mundo. Every now and again they would all meet and talk and try to have fun, but their heart clearly wasn't in it.

He also hadn't seen or heard from Rukia and Renji for a couple of years. Not that he had any doubt they would meet again, when time allowed it, but it felt kind of lonely without them pestering him like before.

Ichigo opened the door to his flat and greeted his cat, dumping his book bag on the floor. He had been feeling strange the entire day, and he could swear someone had been following him but he had been unable to catch whoever it was.

Probably just wishful thinking on his part.

He was undressing to take a shower when he felt it again, this time very close. Ichigo turned around and saw nothing. Shrugging, he stepped under the warm spray and let his mind wander.

He had a date tonight with his girlfriend and didn't know where to take her. They had been dating for a couple of months and though she was cute and funny, Ichigo wasn't able to muster more than a vague feeling of fondness for her.

He was used to that, he had been unable to feel anything for a long time, but it was unfair to Kyoko. Maybe it was time to break up.

Considering this he stepped out of the shower and got dressed, his mind so preoccupied he almost missed the beep of his phone. Not his normal mobile, the other one. Great, a Hollow. Just the distraction he needed.

Without thinking he grabbed his badge and left his body behind.

He arrived at the location, Zangetsu a comforting presence in his hand. The Hollow looked as big and stupid and weak as all the ones he had fought before. Not even strong enough for a warm up. Sighing, Ichigo attacked defeating it with just one blow.

He was about to leave when he felt the same presence as before. Stronger this time. Unnerved, Ichigo turned around looking for the source. There was a flash of white and blue on top of a building, too quick for Ichigo to know what it was but enough to set his heart hammering in his chest. It couldn't be.

He rushed there only to find the place empty and a white bag snagged on a windowsill, its blue logo flashing under the sun.

Wishful thinking.

An angry roar called his attention back to the park where he had killed the Hollow, a shape of ash and dirt reforming on the ground again. Ichigo stared, unable to believe his eyes. Hadn't he just killed the ugly bastard?

He jumped from the roof of the building, moving as fast as he could and dealing a second blow to the almost completely recovered Hollow. It dissolved with a shriek, the cloud regrouping again as soon as Ichigo took his eyes off it. He cursed and stood aside, checking to confirm it was really the same Hollow.

It was, but there was something different about it. The more Ichigo tried to kill it the more of his mask disappeared. It was ridiculous. It was also getting stronger and faster, almost as if it was--no; that was impossible. It was preposterous even thinking about it.

But the truth was it felt as if it was evolving from Hollow to Arrancar in front of his eyes. Concerned and not a bit uneasy Ichigo released his Bankai, shooting a Getsuga Tenshou as soon as Zangetsu shrank in his hand.

This time the Hollow stayed dead.

Not entirely believing what had just happened, Ichigo left the park, deep in thought.

…

He wasn't too surprised the next time it happened. Only a week after the first one another Hollow appeared. Two in such a short span, it was strange though not overly concerning. He'd had worse.

But this one didn't want to stay dead either. Ichigo fought in his Shikai form for what felt like an eternity before tiring of the mouse and cat play, the Hollow shrinking with each blow and his mask vanishing, letting him see something resembling a human face staring triumphantly at him.

He released Bankai and dealt with it like he had done with the previous one. But he was worried now. Something was happening.

…

The worst part was not knowing who to ask for advise. Before there was always Urahara Kisuke and his endless stream of mysterious answers. But he had helped, and he had been a good source of information, even in that roundabout way of his.

Since the end of the war and his return to Soul Society Ichigo had had no way to contact him. It was funny, really. Without Urahara to open a gate for him Ichigo was almost completely isolated from Seiretei. He still received orders on his phone, but apart from that he had no way to talk to anyone in Seiretei. He had not realized just how alone he was on this.

He shouldn't have worried about it, anyway. If something like that was happening with the Hollows, Soul Society had to know. And they would be dispatching someone soon.

It was just a couple of days later he received news from Soul Society.

He arrived one night at home, the third Hollow in a row pulling that resurrection shit on him and making him wonder if he should just try to call Soul Society and check if his phone was for something more than getting orders, only to find they had taken the necessary steps to contact him.

Kuchiki Byakuya was standing in the middle of his living room, Rukia and Renji close by. The fourth person inside, making it feel crowded inside his tiny house, was Urahara Kisuke himself.

Ichigo smiled seeing him with the white haori of his Division and without his infamous hat, his eyes clear and smiling behind his unruly hair.

"Kurosaki-kun," he said, lips curved in a smile that felt warm and welcoming. "It's been a long time."

"Ichigo!" Rukia jumped up and hugged him while Renji approached as well, clasping him on the shoulder.

Byakuya nodded in acknowledgement, his short "Kurosaki-kun" all the greeting he was going to receive from him.

Ichigo greeted them all and put on the kettle for a bit of tea. He had he feeling it was going to be a long talk.

"Why haven't you come to visit?" Rukia asked him while he prepared the refreshments.

Ichigo shrugged, not looking at her. "I've been busy with classes and everything," he said, "and besides, the only guy who knew how to get there was there already, so I had no way to go. You could have come as well."

Rukia smiled, showing proudly her badge. "I didn't have time; I've been made fukutaichou of my Division." Ichigo returned her smile, unsure of how to express how glad he was of having her there.

They joined the rest of the group, exchanging pleasantries while all of them sipped the tea. "So, you've come to talk about these fucking weird Hollows," Ichigo said finally fearing they would never get to the point.

Urahara nodded. "Yes, we've been having trouble lately with Hollows," he began, "after the war most of Hueco Mundo was obliterated, only low class hollow remaining there. Or so we thought."

Ichigo didn't say anything. He knew for a fact there were a few arrancar still there, but he had no intention to share that with them. Not yet at any rate.

"It seemed they were just taking their time to regroup, whoever it is there leading them now. In the past month we've had a few encounters with this type of Hollow--not exactly arrancar but almost. They are hard to kill, resilient to all but the highest grade kidou and able to reform themselves and evolve doing it."

"We've lost quite a few operatives this way," Byakuya intervened then looking straight at him, his brow furrowed in concern. "The more we fight, the stronger they get. Anyone without Bankai has no chance against them--they can hold them for a while, but in the end they are invariably defeated."

Ichigo nodded, "I've seen a couple of them; tough bastards that they are, they are not impossible to kill."

"There's more," Renji said and Ichigo noticed for the first time he was wearing a white haori of his own. Soul Society had dispatched three Taichous and a fukutaichou; it had to be very serious indeed. "There had been reports in these past years after the war of Garganta being opened here in Karakura, in this past month they have multiplied."

That got Ichigo's attention. "Garganta? How? Only Espada level arrancar can open Garganta at will, and there were no surviving Espa--" he stopped, frowning. "That's the reason you're here, is it not? You know he's alive."

Renji nodded. "Yes, we know Grimmjow survived."

"I haven't seen the fucker since that day, if that's what you're asking," he said defensively.

Urahara stared at him worriedly, "Are you sure, Kurosaki-kun?"

"Of course I'm sure, you think I wouldn't notice if Grimmjow was hanging around? I know his reiatsu like the back of my hand; we spent most of the Winter War side by side. If you guys knew about the Garganta why take this long coming?"

"Ehm," Renji was blushing and not looking directly at him, Ichigo noticed. "We assumed, since Grimmjow was the only surviving Espada, there was nothing to fear. He might be a psychopath, but he's not a threat to anyone but you. And you can hold your ground against him without our help and didn't seem to find his company so terrible before."

Ichigo felt his face heating at the implication. Nothing to fear from an Espada travelling between Hueco Mundo and Karakura; yeah right.

"We had hoped," Urahara continued, "there were _personal reasons_ behind those instances of Garganta being opened, but if you tell us you haven't seen him we have to assume either Grimmjow is behind these new development in Hollows or someone else has reached the level needed to travel between Hueco Mundo and here at will."

His face about to burst from embarrassment, Ichigo looked at his hands. Personal reasons--it was as if they believed Grimmjow would be paying social calls to Ichigo.

"Why would he--" Ichigo began, scowling when he realized he had no idea how to finish that thought.

"I was close by when you took Aizen down, Ichigo," Rukia said and he looked up at her, "I _saw_ your farewell."

That was it, he wanted the ground to open up and swallow him right then and there.

He could remember that goodbye kiss, a spur of the moment he had been unable to forget for years. Knowing his friends knew was more than he could bear. "It's not Grimmjow," he finally said, his throat too dry for more words to come out.

"If that's the case, Kurosaki-kun, we won't need to trouble you further," Byakuya said breaking the uncomfortable silence after a few seconds, "we'll send someone to investigate this issue."

…

Grimmjow crossed the open Garganta and landed noiselessly on the sand, using his _sonido_ to move to the half destroyed buildings in front of him.

There wasn't much left standing in Las Noches, the Winter War and the years of careless fights in Aizen's old domain had taken care of that. Grimmjow couldn't care less; Las Noches meant nothing to him. He went straight to the old Throne room, the dais and polished floors eroded by countless sand grains passing through the blasted south wall.

"It's out of control," he said without bothering to check if there was anyone else in the room, a thunderous expression on his face. "I've disposed of all the little shits I could find but some of them followed _you_ to Karakura and attacked the Shinigami."

"So? They're dead now, are they not Grimmjow?" Ulquiorra detached himself from the shadows and walked to Grimmjow, an infuriatingly calm expression on his face. The desire to punch that face full of holes almost overwhelmed Grimmjow, as it did every time he saw the other Espada. "Or did _your_ Shinigami fail to kill that trash?"

Grimmjow glared at him as if he wanted to incinerate him on the spot, Ulquiorra didn't even twitch. "No, they're dead."

"What's the problem then Grimmjow?"

"You were supposed to find the source of those pesky little shits and destroy it instead of travelling between Karakura and here to be with your little bitch, that's the problem," Grimmjow retorted angrily. They had been trying to find what had caused the new evolution of the hollows since the moment they discovered them, without much luck. Grimmjow was sure it was somewhere in Las Noches but so far it had evaded them and he wasn't in the best of moods.

He would gladly share his frustration with Ulquiorra.

He blocked the cero shot at him easily, his fury turning to excitement at the fight he could see coming. Perfect, he had been itching for a bit of blood since his last trip to earth and Ulquiorra was the perfect enemy for that. He only needed to get him angry enough, an ability Grimmjow had in spades.

Ulquiorra had other idea; instead of following through with another attack he turned his back to Grimmjow and slowly retreated to the other side of the room, moving to the door that would lead to his own chamber. "I'm not interested in fighting you Grimmjow," he said dismissing him with his usual coldness. "And I don't care about those hollows or whatever they are as long as they are not a threat to me or my woman."

"Your bitch, you mean," Grimmjow taunted hating being denied a good fight. It had been ages since he had been able to fight anyone but Ulquiorra, and having also that one out of his reach irked him more than he was willing to admit.

Not that Grimmjow really wanted to kill Ulquiorra, but the one he wanted to beat was not there and so far he had failed to find a worthy adversary in Hueco Mundo. Ulquiorra didn't rise to the provocation, with a last contemptuous look at Grimmjow he disappeared.

"Fucker," Grimmjow muttered under his breath and turned to leave as well.

Maybe it was time to finally pay a visit to the Shinigami.

…

Part II (soon)


	3. Part II

**Part II **

Ichigo stared at the ceiling of his bedroom, the low purring of his cat curled at the feet of his bed calming and strangely distracting at the same time.

He couldn't sleep.

He had a biology test the next day and lots of things to do and think about but his mind insisted in going over the same things again and again. Espada level arrancar at Karakura. Grimmjow. Rukia seeing them--the embarrassment of that last fact alone was enough to keep him awake for weeks.

Grimmjow.

If he was honest with himself he'd had to admit his disappointment at not seeing the fucker even once in the past three years. He had imagined the bloodthirsty bastard would be back to pester him once things settled on both sides, and had been surprised when Grimmjow failed to show.

After the first few months Ichigo had admitted Grimmjow wasn't going to appear in front of him again and had moved on with his life: he found a pretty girlfriend to hang out with now he didn't need to look over his shoulder every five seconds, and tried to enjoy the peaceful times.

He had failed miserably on both accounts: the peaceful times were utterly boring and his girlfriends didn't get to evoke more than a faint feeling of fondness in Ichigo.

He missed Rukia and Renji's chaotic influence in his life, missed the excitement of his previous life and missed the annoying presence of Grimmjow by his side.

He fucking missed Grimmjow, what more proof of madness did he need?

He had to be completely and utterly insane.

For a while he had believed there could be something more than forced camaraderie between the two of them, and that last battle against Aizen and Gin had been both terrifying and exhilarating. Grimmjow and he were an unbeatable combination: the Espada's bloodlust and Ichigo's power together had been a sight to behold.

And they had won, against all odds they won.

And then that kiss--it had really scrambled up Ichigo's brain for good. It had been short and little more than lips brushing and pushing against each other, a faint hint of warmness and the sharp tang of blood, gone too fast for Ichigo to even notice it was there. But he had felt it, he had felt that fucking stupid kiss more than everything else he had done with his girlfriends.

Talk about being screwed.

And now this fucking shit happened, and even though Byakuya had said they wouldn't need Ichigo's help he had the feeling he was going to get dragged into it.

Story of his life.

He just needed to convince himself he wasn't excited at the prospect.

…

Grimmjow had no problem locating the Shinigami, he never did.

It was unbelievable that all this time after the Winter War and the bastard had not yet learned to conceal that monstrous reiatsu of his, it was like a beacon for every Hollow in town. It made it easier for Grimmjow to follow him at a distance, his own reiatsu concealed as not to alert his prey.

His prey--that was what the Shinigami had always been since the moment they met, just an interesting prey. Grimmjow didn't want or need to regard him as anything else.

It had been his mistake to allow things to get to that point, and the reason Grimmjow had stayed away from the Shinigami since he was forced to return to Hueco Mundo--or so he told himself. The moment he had felt he'd rather have the Shinigami by his side than dead at his feet, Grimmjow had known how royally screwed he was.

It was a complication and a weakness, and if there was something Grimmjow didn't need were weaknesses.

Not that the time and distance had changed much, his first instinct upon seeing Kurosaki was to appear in front of him and fuck him against the nearest wall.

In truth he never intended to stay away, not for long. He might have been forced to return to Hueco Mundo while the Shinigami cleaned up after the war, and much as it irked him to admit it, Ichigo had been right: he had been in no condition to fight after the beating he got from Gin. Helping kill Gin had been truly enjoyable that day, and he had not been sorry to see _His Master_ die.

He would have killed Aizen himself if he'd been strong enough before he had to bow to him.

He had intended to go back once he was healed and force Ichigo to keep his promise: fight him until Grimmjow was satisfied and maybe then they could get on with the fucking.

He had forgotten--or rather not taken into account--how differently time flowed between the two worlds. By the time Grimmjow thought to go back a whole new set of complications arose and there was no point going back to how things were before.

That didn't mean he had to be happy about it.

Or that Grimmjow didn't intend to change things again.

…

This time when the Hollows came Ichigo was ready for them.

He had been on the way to Inoue's home when he felt the disturbance. He couldn't remember making the conscious decision of going there; at some point in the night he had fallen asleep and when he woke up in the morning, late and panicked believing he would not get to the exam, he had just known he was going to visit Inoue.

It had been weeks since the last time they were together, it would be good to talk to her again.

He felt it when he was almost there, a change in pressure and a ripple, like the fabric of reality had been torn and recomposed in a few seconds, and had no doubt of what that mean. Something had crossed from Hueco Mundo through a Garganta.

Ichigo readied himself for the fight, shedding his living body and putting it in a safe place.

There were at least three Hollows waiting for him, all of them ugly as sin. Ichigo tried to defeat them with just his Shikai, hoping they were the garden-variety Hollow instead of the new crap; he didn't have time for this shit. Not today.

He wasn't that lucky.

And there was something more, that eerie feeling of being watched was back. A niggling on the back of his mind telling him he should be paying more attention to his surroundings, that there was something--someone--known close by.

Tired of the game and with all his senses telling him the greater danger was behind him, Ichigo released his Bankai. He didn't have time to attack, though. The moment the Hollows reformed and regrouped they were blasted into nothingness by a cero.

"You've gotten weaker, Kurosaki," Grimmjow said landing gently in front of him, the dust settling anew where the last Hollow had been. "Trash like that would have never given you trouble before."

Ichigo stared at him, mouth agape, brain trying to understand what had just happened.

Grimmjow, the fucking psycho he had been thinking about was right in front of him after all that time. A thousand words were chasing each other in Ichigo's mind, none of them finding the path to his mouth, _So it was really you. What the fuck are you doing here? It was really you. Why the fuck didn't you show yourself sooner? It is you. Where the fuck have you been?_ His hand gripped Zangestu tighter, itching to release the stopped attack on the fucker.

His jaw unlocked, his mouth finally working. "Getsuga Tenshou," Ichigo heard himself saying, feeling the attack being released from his body into the sword, the black light spreading from the metal.

Grimmjow didn't look surprised or angry; he just laughed and deflected the attack as if it was nothing; Ichigo felt his blood boiling, his entire body itching to beat the shit out of the fucker for having the nerve to disappear on him after that mind job of a kiss only to appear again now.

He took a deep breath, visibly claming himself and sealed his Bankai so he wouldn't feel too tempted to use it against Grimmjow. He wasn't going to give the bastard the satisfaction of seeing how much his presence was upsetting him.

"What are you doing here Grimmjow?" he said as coldly as he could, looking at him with narrowed eyes.

"Taking care of the trash," Grimmjow said with a shrug. He took a step toward Ichigo, not threatening in any manner but Ichigo couldn't help but take a step back, keeping the distance between them; Grimmjow noticed and smirked.

"You sound like Ulquiorra," Ichigo said inanely, still trying to figure out why was Grimmjow there and how he felt about it.

Another shrug. "I spend too much time with the fucker, only half interesting his going on there now."

What? Ichigo stared at him, blinking, the meaning of those words registering in his brain. "What do you mean?"

"Fucker is more interested in spending time with his _woman_ than anything else." Ichigo could hear the scorn dripping from that word and was trying to understand what Grimmjow was saying without much luck.

"Ulquiorra is dead," he finally said, his brow furrowing, "I killed him."

Grimmjow laughed, "You sure did, Kurosaki," he took another step toward Ichigo who took another step back, "and then that woman you were so intent in rescuing _from him_ asked me to take her back so she could save his life. I still had a score to settle with him so it suited me just fine."

"You're lying."

Grimmjow shrugged again, still advancing toward Ichigo, the old infuriating smirk on his face. It still annoyed the hell out of Ichigo. "Whatever," he stopped and studied Ichigo, still keeping the distance between them, that cocky smirk widening. "Are you afraid of me now, Kurosaki?"

A wave of anger, red hot and so familiar, stopped Ichigo's retreat. He glared at Grimmjow as if he wanted to incinerate him on the spot, and with a jolt Ichigo realized that was the most emotion he had felt in the past three years. God, he was so fucked it wasn't even funny. "Fuck you, Grimmjow," he spat, forcing himself to stay still when the bastard started advancing again, closing the distance. "Tell me what the hell you are doing here now. What do you have to do with those fucking weird things? And what the fuck is that about Ulquiorra?"

"Nothing, they're just pests I'm getting rid of."

"Grimmjow," Ichigo growled, his patience wearing thin. How on earth could he have missed this annoying fucker?

Grimmjow seemed to be enjoying himself, closing the distance between the two of them, Ichigo stubbornly refusing to back out now. "You really don't know," he said amused. "Your woman, the one you almost died to save, went back to save Ulquiorra and has been fucking him ever since."

Ichigo shook his head; it had to be a lie. Orihime would not do something like that, she wouldn't. But--Ichigo had noticed how she had been changing, withdrawing slowly and keeping to herself.

"You're lying," he insisted.

"You know I'm not, and I don't care what you believe. I didn't come here to talk about Ulquiorra or his woman's life."

"What did you come here for, Grimmjow?" Ichigo asked finally, eyeing him warily.

Grimmjow stopped mere inches from him, so close Ichigo could almost feel the heat from his body.

"Don't you know, Kurosaki?"

He did know; he could tell by the way Grimmjow kept approaching him but he'd be damned if he was going to say it, or let him fuck with his mind again.

"We have unfinished business, Kurosaki," Grimmjow said leaning forward, their faces mere inches apart. Ichigo held his ground, forcing himself to stay still and not move away--or close the distance between them. "You owe me a fight."

Ichigo blinked, tightening his hold on Zangetsu and then glared a Grimmjow. A fight? A fucking fight? After all that time and the bastard still wanted--well, right now he also felt like killing Grimmjow. He jumped back and gathered his reiatsu, feeling the energy crackle around him and focusing around his body and suddenly Grimmjow was on him, grabbing his sword arm in a vice grip and pulling him against his body.

The kiss this time was nothing like the one Ichigo remembered, it was hungry and demanding, teeth clashing, tongues hungrily chasing each other from mouth to mouth, bodies pressed together almost painfully. Ichigo hear a dull thud when his sword fell to the ground but he couldn't care less, _this_ was what he had wanted for three fucking long years.

He grabbed Grimmjow's hair with his now free hands and pulled him even closer, trying to devour his mouth.

He heard some noise around them but paid no attention to it, they were in their spiritual forms so the people around them would not see anything. He wasn't sure he'd care even of they could see them.

"Friends of yours, Kurosaki?" Grimmjow asked breaking the kiss and Ichigo turned slowly.

_We'll send someone to investigate the issue._ That was what Byakuya had said, and Ichigo, idiot that he could sometimes be, had already forgotten that. Of course Soul Society was going to dispatch people the moment they felt a Garganta being opened. He should have known.

Feeling his face heating to the point of burning Ichigo looked at Rukia and Renji, both of them staring at him with twin expressions of amused disbelief. Fuck. Not too far from them were Kira and Shuuhei, swords ready in their hands but frozen on the spot.

He felt Grimmjow moving away from him, Ichigo still frozen in horror staring at the recently arrived Shinigami, and he felt the telling ripple of a Garganta opening again.

"Ichigo, get away from him!" Rukia exclaimed releasing her sword.

Ichigo looked at his friends and then turned to look at Grimmjow who was already moving to cross to Hueco Mundo. He made his decision in a split second and with an apologetic look to his friends he rushed after Grimmjow.

…

Part III (soon)


	4. Part III

**Part III**

The trip to Hueco Mundo was short and awkward, nothing like the hurried race Ichigo remembered from his last time. Grimmjow's Garganta opened right in front of the derelict Las Noches, the collapsed buildings and sand filled halls greeting them silently.

Grimmjow looked back once they arrived, glared hotly at Ichigo and flash stepped into the building. Ichigo followed him, annoyed.

"What the fuck is wrong with you, Grimmjow?" he demanded the moment they were inside what looked like Aizen's Throne Room.

Grimmjow stopped and turned to look at him. "What are you doing here, Shinigami?" he asked angrily, "Why did you follow me?"

So they were back to that.

Ichigo stared at him, not believing what he had just heard. "Like hell I was going to let you leave again like that!" he snapped, grabbing the front of Grimmjow's jacket and slamming him against the closest still standing wall. "Do you think you can come and fuck with my mind as you please?"

"Why were those other Shinigami there?"

Ichigo stared at him as if Grimmjow was an idiot, which he probably was now he thought about it. "Are you stupid or just pretending to be? You opened a fucking Garganta of course they were going to appear!"

"They never did before."

"Before they thought you--" he cut himself short and took a step back realizing what he had been about to say. There was no way in hell he'd tell that to Grimmjow. "You know what? I don't give a shit about you or those things. I'll let Soul Society deal with it and forget about the whole thing."

"I can deal with it," Grimmjow said still glaring at him, "I don't need the Shinigami sticking their noses where they don't belong."

Oh God, he was such a fool! He should have seen it sooner--three fucking years without news from anyone and he had been telling himself the entire time things were just too busy for them to pay social calls. It was so clear now: he had cleaned their mess before and as soon as his usefulness was over they had promptly forgotten about him.

And now they were back, all of them.

"Of course you can't, Grimmjow! And neither can them! Why else would they come to _me_ after three fucking years? Why else would _you_ appear after all this time if all of you could deal with your problems on your own?" Ichigo snapped finally, his voice too loud in the silent room. He took a breath and tried to calm himself. "I'll leave you to it, Grimmjow. Open a Garganta so I can leave."

Grimmjow didn't move, just stared at Ichigo with a strange expression, a frown creasing his brow. Suddenly his expression cleared and he smirked.

"Did you miss me, Kurosaki?" Grimmjow said his voice full of arrogance and amusement.

Ichigo felt his face flushing with rage. "Open the fucking thing, Grimmjow," he said through gritted teeth.

Grimmjow grabbed the front of Ichigo's shihakushou and reversed their positions, pinning him against the wall with his body, the cockiest smile Ichigo had ever seen on his face. Ichigo ground his teeth together so hard he thought he might break them. "Did you, Kurosaki?"

Ichigo refused to show any kind of reaction, he just glared at Grimmjow and pressed his lips together.

Grimmjow laughed. "You did," he said before leaning forward for a kiss.

Ichigo stood still, not returning the kiss and not trying to get away either. He was fucking tired of games and was not going to give Grimmjow the satisfaction of getting any reaction from him. He didn't know what he was thinking when he followed the bastard, but it was clear it had been a mistake.

Grimmjow leaned back when he noticed Ichigo's lack of response and stared at him, considering. "Were you waiting for me?" he asked with the same arrogance and Ichigo closed his eyes, still not moving. "You were, even after you began fucking those pretty little things you were waiting for me."

It would be easy, so easy, to just push Grimmjow off him and fight him until the bastard showed him the way out. Or he could just return the kiss, let Grimmjow fuck him and get it out of his system, forget about Grimmjow once and for all. Ichigo did neither, just stood there with his eyes closed feeling Grimmjow's breath on his face, the heat of his body trapping him.

He felt lips on his neck, warm breath and that infuriating mouth trailing fire down his throat. Ichigo forced himself to stay still and not respond, not give Grimmjow the satisfaction of screwing him up even more than he already had.

The mouth was on his ear now, the body pressed painfully against his.

"Admit you missed me, Ichigo," Grimmjow growled in his ear and Ichigo's eyes snapped open. "I know _I_ did."

It was the use of his name what did it. Grimmjow never called him his name, not even while they were fighting side by side during the war. He had always been _Shinigami_, when Grimmjow was being especially annoying, or _Kurosaki._

Never Ichigo.

He moved then, his hands coming up to grab Grimmjow's head, pulling it back and leaning forward, mashing their mouths together. He could feel the low rumble of Grimmjow's laugh against his chest, his slick tongue pushing inside his mouth and tasting every single inch of it. Ichigo gave as good as he got, devouring Grimmjow's mouth, pushing against him as if trying to merge their bodies together, his arousal fast and dizzying.

A leg sneaked between Ichigo's thighs, parting them and pressing against his erection. "Fuck, yes!" he gasped against Grimmjow's mouth, biting his lips hard enough to break the skin, the taste of blood reminding him of that first kiss.

Ichigo rubbed himself against Grimmjow harder, all conscious thought lost except for his need to come right then and there.

"--no, I'm sure it was Grimmjow's voice." A voice was saying from afar; it might have been in a different universe for all he cared. He was so close.

"Leave him be, Inoue."

Ichigo gasped when Grimmjow's lips moved to his throat, sucking and nipping at the skin while that leg pressed harder against his erection. His hands moved from Grimmjow's hair down his back, grabbing his arse and pushing him even closer, feeling Grimmjow's cock against his hip.

"There is something I want to ask him--Grimmjow!" Inoue Orihime's shocked exclamation finally cut through the fog of desire, and Ichigo felt the bottom of his stomach dropping. "Kurosaki-kun?"

Ichigo froze, reality reasserting itself at that. Shit, shit, shit. As if in a dream, Ichigo saw Grimmjow move away from him, and expression or utter irritation and frustration on his face.

"Ulquiorra," Grimmjow spat, "take your woman away from here, we're busy right now." He turned to Ichigo again and leaned forward to resume what he was doing. With a glare, Ichigo stopped him. "Fuck, whatever. We'll finish it later. What do you want, woman?"

Ichigo closed his eyes as if blocking the scene from his sight would make it not happen, and wished for what felt like the umpteenth time for the ground to open and swallow him whole. This could not be happening.

He opened his eyes and looked past Grimmjow at the open doorway on the other side of the room. Standing there frozen was Orihime, her hand firmly clasped between Ulquiorra's pale ones. She was staring at him with a shocked expression.

He tried to imagine the scene they made when Orihime entered and blushed again, mortified, his arousal deflating instantly.

Taking a deep breath Ichigo pushed away from the wall and past Grimmjow, not even looking at him. "Inoue," he said, at a loss for words. What did one say in that situation?

"Kurosaki-kun, it's really you." He could see from there she was blushing almost as much as he had to be, and Ulquiorra was standing a bit in front of her, his stance protective. He felt his brows trying to crawl up his forehead in spite of himself. "I--I didn't expect--" She also didn't seem to know what to say. "You--and him--"

"You finally went to get him, Grimmjow," Ulquiorra said, his voice as expressionless as it had always been.

"No, he followed me here after I went to kill some of those stupid things."

Ichigo ignored Grimmjow and Ulquiorra for the moment, his attention focused in Orihime. He could tell she was uncomfortable but she had not taken her hand from Ulquiorra's, and was looking Ichigo in the eyes. He could see, even with the shock and embarrassment, that she looked happier than the last time he saw her.

"Kurosaki-kun I--" Orihime tried again, and again she seemed not to know what to say.

"You saved him," Ichigo finally said, his voice almost too loud in the suddenly silent room. He could feel Ulquiorra's eyes on him but he paid him no mind.

"I had to," she said with a sad smile. "I couldn't not do it."

Ichigo nodded. He could understand it; it was just the way Orihime was. "And you've been with him, _together_, all this time."

"Yes."

"_He_ kidnapped you, have you forgotten?"

Orihime shook her head, silent. Ichigo turned to look at Ulquiorra now, who was staring at him intently. He could still read no emotion in him, but he didn't feel threatened like he had in the past.

"Why?" Ichigo heard himself asking.

"She saved me," Ulquiorra said simply. It was more of a response he had expected to hear, and somehow he had the feeling Ulquiorra wasn't referring to his life.

"Why?" he asked again, this time looking at her. Orihime stared at him and then her eyes moved past him at where Grimmjow was, listening silently for once. Of course, after what he had been doing a minute ago he had no right to judge anyone. "Never mind Inoue. Are you happy?"

"Yes." No hesitation at all. That was good enough for him.

Ichigo nodded and smiled and Orihime returned it with blinding happiness.

"Now the heart warming reunion is out of the way," Grimmjow said approaching Ichigo again, "either say what you were going to say or leave so we can finish what we were doing."

…

"So you don't know more than Soul Society does," Ichigo said after a while, looking from Grimmjow to Orihime. Ulquiorra was sitting next to her, listening uninterested and not participating at all. Ichigo could not, for the life of him, imagine what Orihime could see in the creepy guy.

"No we don't," Grimmjow said irritated. He took it as a personal offence, it seemed.

"They started appearing about a couple of months ago," Orihime said quietly. It was strange to see her there in those circumstances, but she looked more self-confident that he had seen her before, and there was nothing of that shyness he always associated with her. "At first we didn't think much of it but when they started moving between worlds we knew we had to do something."

Ichigo looked at Ulquiorra. "For him."

Orihime nodded. "For both of them. Soul Society believed there were no Espada left, but if they needed to investigate--"

"Yes, not the best of ideas. Any Shinigami who found an Arrancar would try to kill them. They might have known about Grimmjow and let him be before, but Ulquiorra is another matter."

All eyes turned to look at him, questioning.

"Just don't ask," he said anticipating the question he could see coming. "Just don't."

"Soul Society sent you to investigate then," Orihime asked. She was looking at Ichigo with a worried expression and it wasn't difficult to see what caused it. Not that her boyfriend was an innocent and harmless kid, he was perfectly capable of defending himself and decimating Seiretei in the process. Ichigo knew that perfectly well.

"No, they actually told me they wouldn't need my help, I found Grimmjow when I was on my way to your house."

"But they are investigating," Grimmjow intervened then glaring at Ichigo, "and since this idiot followed me here they will be coming shortly now they know where to find us."

Ichigo glared back. "They always knew where to find you Grimmjow, they just didn't care," he said nastily. It was amazing how often he wanted to choke the life out of the bastard considering what he wanted to do to him the rest of the time.

"Who?" She asked turning to look at Ulquiorra, anxiety and fear easy to read in her gaze.

"Renji and Rukia for sure, maybe a couple of others," Ichigo said, shrugging.

She relaxed and Grimmjow snorted a laugh. "Woman, he can take care of himself, he's not gotten so weak with you two pesky Shinigami can give him much trouble."

"Shut up Grimmjow," Ichigo snapped before Orihime could open her mouth. He turned to her. "If it's just them they won't say a word, don't worry. And they won't judge you either."

She nodded clearly relieved.

"They originate in Las Noches," Ulquiorra finally said and every eye focused on him. "I followed their reiatsu and it led me back here."

"I thought you said you didn't care, Ulquiorra," Grimmjow said mockingly.

"I don't, but she does."

Ichigo stood up and looked around. "This place is falling to pieces, it shouldn't be so hard to find them if they are here. Let's get a head start searching for them."

Grimmjow stood as well and went up to him, stopping scant inches apart. "We'll start searching for them, Shinigami. If you're not here to fuck just leave."

Ichigo saw red, too angry to be embarrassed or to think about Orihime watching them. "Fuck off Grimmjow. I'm already involved whether you like it or not and I'm not leaving," he said coldly clenching his fists tightly and restraining the impulse to punch that smug face.

Grimmjow just shrugged, "Suit yourself," he said before moving to the closest door. "We'll start searching this area. Ulquiorra, take your woman and start on the lower levels."

Ichigo watched him leave through the door and then turned to look at Orihime and Ulquiorra, who looked like the only thing preventing him from killing Grimmjow was her. He could relate to the feeling.

Rolling his eyes and wondering once again what the fuck was wrong with him Ichigo turned and followed Grimmjow out of the door.

…

Part IV (soon)


	5. Part IV

**Part IV**

Damn that fucking Ulquiorra and his stupid woman! Grimmjow was feeling so angry and frustrated he was very tempted to blast the rest of Las Noches to bits with a cero. Maybe that would help with the search. What a fucking timing! He had been close, so close and now he had to play hide and seek with those pesky little things, Kurosaki trailing behind him instead of writhing under him like he should.

He could feel Kurosaki's glare digging into the back of his head, the Shinigami wasn't happy at all. That made Grimmjow feel slightly better, at least he wasn't the only one annoyed and unsatisfied.

"What the fuck is your problem now, Grimmjow?" Kurosaki said his voice tense and oozing irritation with each word.

He didn't stop or look back, just kept walking down to the corridor leading to the stairs, climbing to the upper levels of the building. The sooner they got this done the sooner they could get on with what Grimmjow really wanted.

"You're a complete arsehole, you know that Grimmjow?"

He stopped at that and turned to look at Kurosaki, who was coming up the stairs a couple steps behind and scowling up at him.

"I don't need you for this, Shinigami," he said glaring at him, "I told you I can deal with these things on my own."

"Yeah, that much is clear. I can see how well you dealt with them before." Kurosaki had the nerve to smirk and Grimmjow felt the urge to wipe it off his face with his fist.

Or maybe his mouth.

"Shut the fuck up Shinigami," Grimmjow snapped, turning again and continuing up the stairs. "I didn't ask you to come, did I?"

"Fucker," he heard Kurosaki mutter under his breath, but he didn't say anything else.

They continued to climb in silence, the tension hanging around them like a shroud. What they had to do was fuck and get it out of their system, and then they could look for the fucking hollows and kill them all.

But there was no way they'd do that, not with them knowing more shinigami were coming. If Grimmjow had to endure one more interruption he was going to blow up the bastard with a cero.

They reached the top level, the sun coming down strong through the parts of the roof which had been destroyed, a long corridor leading to several rooms. Before they were Aizen and his shinigami quarters, and Grimmjow was convinced there had to be tunnels and secret ways leading to different parts of Las Noches.

The first door on his left opened to that creepy arsehole Gin's bedroom. It was mostly still standing, the huge bed still made and covered with a thin layer of dust, as if waiting for its owner to come back.

It was giving Grimmjow ideas.

Kurosaki entered the room behind him and followed his look, rolling his eyes. Grimmjow turned around and walked up to him, stopping close enough to touch him.

"Don't even think about it, you bastard," Kurosaki growled warningly. "I'm fucking sick of your games. We're going do what we have to do, and we're going to do it now."

Grimmjow stared at him amused. He could feel the heat coming off Kurosaki's body, could almost smell the desire on him. He leaned forward only to be stopped bit the sharp tip of the shinigami's sword at his throat, wrappings and all.

"Do you think this is a game, Grimmjow?" Kurosaki asked.

"I think you want me," Grimmjow replied not bothered in the least by the threat.

"That might be true, but I'm not going to let you screw me up like before," he said stubbornly. "Renji and Rukia and who knows how many more shinigami are on their way, I'm not putting up shows for anyone else today. We have a job to do."

Grimmjow put his hand on the flat of the sword and moved it aside, leaning closer. "Have it your way," he closed the distance and pressed their lips together, his action belying his words. The kiss was short but intense, Grimmjow pushing his tongue inside Kurosaki's mouth and tasting him hungrily. "But when we kill all those hollows I'm going to fuck you so hard you won't be able to move in a week," he said taking a step back and Kurosaki had the never to snort a laugh.

"We'll see Grimmjow," he said, moving away from him and muttering under his breath. "I have to be one very sick fuck to have fallen for a bastard like this."

…

Ichigo opened the door at the end of the dark corridor, the bright light on the other side blinding him momentarily, and cursed.

They were again in the same place.

He stepped into the Throne Room, Grimmjow a few steps behind him, and glared at the place as if he wanted it to burst into flame.

"This is getting ridiculous, Grimmjow," he said annoyed. It was the third time they ended up the same room, all the previous hidden passages leading to the exact same location.

Grimmjow didn't look much happier, scowling darkly and gathering energy into the palm of his hand as if he wanted to completely destroy it. Ichigo couldn't blame him but it would be harder to find what they were looking for if Las Noches crumbled to dust.

"Stop it!" he snapped and Grimmjow did, shooting him a look this side of sulking. Ichigo rolled his eyes. "This is hard enough without you destroying the place."

"What do you suggest we do, Kurosaki?" Grimmjow said defiantly, it was clear he was also getting very angry at their lack of progress but Ichigo was not in the mood for that.

"I don't know! This is where you live, not me. Aren't you supposed to know the place better?" Ichigo retorted crossing his arms on his chest. Just being with Grimmjow was enough to set his teeth on edge. He was the most annoying guy Ichigo had ever met.

He really was a sick, sick individual.

"This place is a maze!" Grimmjow said raising his voice, "The only person who knew it was Aizen, and maybe Gin and Tousen. You don't believe he actually trusted his Arrancar?"

Ichigo shook his head. No, he didn't think Aizen trusted anyone, maybe not even Gin.

"Didn't he trust Ulquiorra?" Ichigo said remembering how the Espada had always followed Aizen's orders without question.

"If he did, he didn't trust him that much."

Damn! So it was back to the beginning, up the stairs and pick another door. He was really tired of all that shit.

They were almost at the door when Grimmjow stopped and turned around, scanning their surroundings intently.

"I think your friends are here," he said and Ichigo turned to look as well. He couldn't see or feel anything yet.

"What?"

"A Garganta was just opened and I can feel five, no four, shinigami coming," Grimmjow smiled nastily, "I think Ulquiorra's woman ran out of luck."

Ichigo saw them a few seconds later, two black clad figures rushing up to them, another two following close. It wasn't difficult to see who they were. Shuuhei and Kira were at the front, swords at the ready while Renji and Rukia followed at a more sedated pace.

"Step away from the Arrancar, Kurosaki-san," Kira said stepping inside the room, Wabisuke already released in his hand. That didn't look good.

Shuuhei took position a few steps to the side of his companion and also pointed his released sword at Grimmjow.

"What are you doing?" Ichigo asked, letting all the anger and irritation of the unsuccessful search colour his words. It was turning out to be a long, long day, and his patience was at an all-time's low thanks to Grimmjow. The last thing he needed right now was to fight against his supposed allies to save the neck of the guy he wanted to strangle the most.

"We're here following orders, Kurosaki-san," Shuuhei said reasonably, not making any move apart from glaring at Grimmjow.

Grimmjow just smirked infuriatingly and leaned against the wall, completely unconcerned.

"There is new Arrancar activity and everything points to that Espada being involved," Kira said bristling, the hand holding the hilt of his sword clenched so tightly Ichigo could see it going white.

"Grimmjow had nothing to do with that, Kira," Ichigo said wearily. He knew he would need to explain himself, and probably repeat the scene when Ulquiorra appeared, and he was getting fucking tired of it.

He wanted to kill the hollows, resolve that problem and then go back to his body and home and sleep for a long time. He'd be ready to face Grimmjow and his mercurial mood-swings afterwards.

"You don't need to protect him, Kurosaki-san," Kira insisted. He seemed to have problems believing Ichigo had wanted to be there, and he couldn't blame him. Ichigo had problems believing it himself after all. "It doesn't matter what he used to force you to--" he stopped himself with a quick look back at his back.

Renji and Rukia arrived at the precise instant, taking just one look at the situation and stepping up to Ichigo. "Stop that Kira," Renji said turning to him. "We've already told you it's not Grimmjow."

"Kurosaki-san was taken--"

"Oh, for fuck's sake Kira!" Renji said shaking his head. "You saw Ichigo following Grimmjow, and you saw what they were doing when we got there! Nobody has taken him anywhere against his will."

Ichigo saw Kira and Shuuhei share a look which spoke volumes and said nothing good about Ichigo's mental health, sheathing their swords again. Grimmjow had not said a word or moved since they arrived, probably enjoying Ichigo's embarrassment.

"I thought you said Grimmjow wasn't the one going to Karakura," Rukia said reproachfully, calling Ichigo's attention to her. "You didn't need to lie."

"I wasn't lying," Ichigo said turning to her. He hoped his face wasn't as red as it felt. Rukia had seen them _twice_, it was almost too much to bear. "It wasn't him."

"Who was it then?" Renji asked. It was clear he didn't believe it either.

"Him," Grimmjow spoke for the first time, tilting his head towards the other end of the room where Orihime and Ulquiorra has just arrived.

…

At least this time Ichigo wasn't the only one feeling embarrassed, though it was a poor comfort when Rukia fixed them with the most incredulous look he had ever seen and asked if there was something in the air in Karakura which made people insane. Orihime's face lit up like a Christmas tree and Ichigo's felt more or less the same, but at least Ulquiorra wasn't laughing.

It was more than could be said for Grimmjow, the annoying prick.

"So, what you're saying is these guys are helping us now?" Renji finally asked breaking the uncomfortable silence that had fallen in the room, his arched brow leaving no doubt of his thoughts about that development.

"Not helping you, Shinigami," Grimmjow said coldly, the amusement completely gone from his face now. "We don't need your help and we're definitely not _helping you_. We're dealing with our pest problem on our own."

Ichigo was too fucking tired of having the same conversation again and again, he shot a sharp look at Grimmjow and turned to Renji, "They're not behind them, if that's what you want to know. And they like them as much as we do, so it would be better _for everyone_," he said pointedly with a quick glance at Grimmjow, "if we could all work together and finish this as soon as possible."

Everyone stared at him as if he had grown another head. Clearly cooperation wasn't at the top of their list. Ichigo rolled his eyes.

"Look Grimmjow, I know you can find and kill them all on your own, and so can they," he snapped impatiently. The day had gone from bad to worse really quickly and the last thing he wanted was to mediate between Grimmjow and the shinigami. He had more pressing matters to attend, and killing them all so he could gain a modicum peace of mind, would definitely be a bad idea. It was sorely tempting, though. "But if we don't want to be here _searching_ the entire fucking week we'll have to do it together," he finished with an annoyed look around. "I, for one, have better things to do."

He looked from Grimmjow, who seemed to be sulking again, to Renji, who had the most irritating knowing smirk on his face.

"Fine," Renji finally said, "I have way too much paperwork waiting for me in Seiretei to waste my time here."

Grimmjow was still glaring at him, but he gave a curt nod and pushed off the wall he had been leaning against. "And where do you suggest we begin searching, Shinigami? We've already combed this place and we've found nothing."

"Have you checked that freak's lab?" Renji asked.

"Szayel's lab in the basement was empty," Ulquiorra said, the first words which came from his mouth since the shinigami's arrival.

"What about the other one? The one where Ishida and I fought against him?"

…

Part V (soon)


	6. Part V

A/N: It's been ages I know, and I apologize. I didn't intend to stop writing this one for so long, it just a thousand other stories took over my brain and it's taken me this long to beat my muse into submission. It's not an amazing chapter, and nothing much happens, but it was what I needed to get the inspiration back wth this one.

**Part V**

"What in seven hells is that thing?" Ichigo asked looking horrified at the mummified corpse standing in the middle of the rubble.

Renji had guided them outside Las Noches, to a place which was close by but slightly apart from the main compound. From a distance it looked just like a pile of rocks thrown haphazardly in the middle of the sand, but after a careful look Ichigo realized it was more like something had been blown up from the inside out, a big hole revealing a wide chamber underneath.

Close to the hole was the pink haired mummy, its dried features staring at nothingness in horror.

"So this is where Szayel was," Grimmjow said contemptuously, shooting the thing a disinterested look before moving forward, Ulquiorra and Orihime trailing after him without sparing it even a glance.

"How come you didn't find this before, Espada?" Kira asked suspiciously, giving wide berth to the body.

"We searched Las Noches from the inside," Ulquiorra was the one to answer without even looking back at Kira and Shuuhei, who closed the group approaching the hole. "This might not be connected to the main building, or it's connected by a hidden passage we didn't find."

"Yes, that freak was always secretive with his experiments," Grimmjow added with a shrug before disappearing inside the hole. Ichigo followed him, landing gracefully in a wide chamber, empty except for two doors on opposite sides and the debris fallen from the ceiling.

The rest of the group followed them inside.

"Which way?" Rukia asked and Ulquiorra moved to the door further from their position.

"That other one goes back to Las Noches, the laboratory should be this way," he said opening the door and revealing a white corridor behind it. They went that way, walking in silence for a while until they reached another door.

It opened to a slightly darker chamber, a bit wider and a lot shorter leading to another door in the end. Without a word they crossed the empty room and opened the new door.

The first thing Ichigo noticed was the bright light. It was white, reflected off the too-white walls and ceiling, and almost blinding. Then the smell hit him.

"Oh fuck!" he said scrunching up his nose in distaste. He could see the disgust mirrored in his companions, Rukia and Renji flinching and taking a reflexive step back. "What the fuck is this?"

The room smelled of death and decay, the stench so powerful it brought back memories of the war. Ichigo could see in one side of the room a row of glass cages, some of the panels were broken and inside there were decomposing corpses. That wasn't the most disturbing thing. All of them had pink hair, almost the only thing recognizable on them.

"That has to be the most disturbing thing I've seen," Renji said, his face showing the horror he had to be feeling.

"Are all of them--" Orihime asked, her voice tremulous. Ulquiorra grabbed her hand and squeezed it and she drew closer to him, almost leaning against his side. Ichigo felt the urge to roll his eyes; if there was something he had never imagined Ulquiorra could be, that was caring.

"Szayel used himself in his experiments, it seems," Ulquiorra said, darting a quick look at the cages and then moving quickly to the other door, Orihime following him closely.

That was a good idea, Ichigo didn't want to spend one minute longer than necessary in that place.

The next room was also devoid of life, and luckily of dead things as well. There were shelves upon shelves of folders and ledgers. No one gave them a second look, though it was clear that it was the library. It probably contained the documentation for every single one of Szayel's experiments, and Ichigo made a mental note to tell Urahara about it.

He was probably the only being who'd like a place like that.

There were more disgusting specimens and other smelly things in the next chamber, though nothing as bad as the first ones. The smell, for one, was at least bearable.

"Is this place never going to end?" he heard Renji grumble and Ichigo agreed with him. Labs made him nervous.

They trailed after Ulquiorra and Orihime from one room to the next, Ichigo's eyes scanning the contents quickly before being drawn again to Grimmjow's figure. He didn't understand himself where that bastard was concerned, it was impossible to want to kill someone so much and at the same time want to fuck him so desperately.

Grimmjow was the most annoying being Ichigo had ever met, and he was a complete and utter bastard. He came and went as he pleased, with complete disregard of Ichigo's wishes and feelings. He cared about nothing but himself and his desires, and he took what he wanted when he wanted it.

And the worst past was Ichigo was perfectly conscious of that, and he still wanted him.

"So," Renji said falling into step with him, his eyes on Grimmjow's back as well, his voice pitched low enough only Ichigo could hear him. "What's with you and the psycho? Didn't you say you had not seen him in years?"

Ichigo felt his face heating up. He had been lucky enough there were other issues at hand, but he had known there was no way to avoid his friend's questioning.

"I hadn't," he replied, not looking at Renji.

"And the first thing you do after three years is snog him in broad daylight and follow him to this wasteland?" Renji's voice was thick with amusement and incredulity. "Pull the other one."

"It's true," he grounded through clenched teeth. "I didn't heard from him since the War ended," he looked sharply at his friend. "Same as I didn't heard from any of you, you bastards."

Renji's hands rose in a placating manner. "Hey, it wasn't three years for us, remember? And we had a lot in out plate. Seiretei was in a sorry state and we were missing several Taichous and Fukutaichous, this hasn't exactly been easy for us either."

Ichigo nodded, acknowledging the truth in Renji's words but it still annoyed the hell out of him they couldn't find the time for a visit except when they were in trouble. Again.

"But you didn't answer me," Renji said, stubborn like only he could be. "Are you fucking insane, getting involved with that Espada? He's bad news, he's going to screw you up three ways from Sunday."

Ichigo laughed humourlessly. "Don't I know that? I just can't help it! It's as if my brain shuts down when I'm with him," Ichigo shook his head, not finding the right words to explain to his friend. He didn't have the words to explain it to himself. "It's not as if I intend to marry him or declare my undying love, anyway. I just want to--" he stopped short at Renji's snort, flushing crimson. "Shut up! I know he's a psychopath, and trust me, no one wants to kill him more than I do."

"You're a prefect match," Renji chuckled. "Both of you are insane."

As if he knew they were talking about him, Grimmjow turned around and shot them a curious look. Ichigo narrowed his eyes at him and he smirked before turning again, following Ulquiorra into the next room.

Renji shook his head, his expression turning serious. "Just be careful, I don't trust him."

"You'd be an idiot if you did," Ichigo said, a strong conviction in his voice. Just because he was insane enough to be attracted to Grimmjow didn't mean he was stupid. "I don't know what I'm doing, but I don't trust him either."

Whatever Renji was going to say to that, the words died on his lips when they entered the next room.

…

Grimmjow followed Ulquiorra and his woman from one room of that pristine labyrinth to another, the weight of Kurosaki's stare making him more nervous than that place ever could.

He didn't know what Kurosaki was telling that other Shinigami, though it was clear he was the focus of their conversation. It had annoyed him at first when that loud red-head had approached Kurosaki, the easy camaraderie he could see between them making him want to hit something. He could remember the Shinigami from the War, always at Kurosaki's side with that other bitch on tow. He couldn't stand them then and the feeling had not changed.

It was also mutual, if the glares the tiny bitch and the other Shinigami threw him were any indication.

He looked back, intrigued in spite of himself and couldn't help but to smirk when he saw Kurosaki glaring at him through narrowed eyes.

If only they didn't need to find those fucking things, he'd have Kurosaki under him, and he was going to make him glare and curse as much as he liked.

So wrapped up he was on the thought of what he would do to Kurosaki, Grimmjow almost bumped against Ulquiorra's woman back. He was about to snap something at her when he took in their surroundings, stopping short and allowing a smile to creep on his face.

Finally.

That last door had opened to a wider chamber, the biggest one they'd seen in that laboratory. The walls were lined with glass cages, kind of like the first they encountered, but there were no decomposing corpses in them. They were filled with live and healthy hollows, all of them staring malevolently at the new arrivals.

There were also hollows outside the cages, quite a few of them, and in the middle of them was a figure Grimmjow would have never imagined they'd find there.

In hindsight, though, it was almost logical.

"I didn't think it would take you this long to find me, Ulquiorra. And I see you brought some interesting subjects with you. Pity you didn't bring the Quincy as well."

"The fuck!" he heard the red headed Shinigami, Renji he thought his name might be, gasp behind him.

At his back he heard the sound of the rest of their group arriving, various expressions of surprise leaving their lips.

"Isn't that your corpse out there, Szayel?" Grimmjow said, stepping around Ulquiorra's woman to have a good view of the room. He took stock of the hollows, gearing up for the fight that was surely to come. There were a lot of them, though they didn't look too powerful. Szayel was checking one of them, taking notes in a small notebook in his hand. Grimmjow would have laughed at the unreality of the situation had not know how much of a freak Szayel was. "Ya know, that pink mummy outside. It looks like you, only better."

No, he shouldn't have been surprised to find the freak there, and still breathing. All those pink haired corpses in the first room should have clued them Szayel had always been the creepiest of the Espada, and the one Grimmjow could stand the less. It stood to reason he had some trick up his sleeve, and if he knew the creep like he did, they were in for a long and boring explanation on how he had cheated death.

He just hoped it didn't take to long so he could go ahead and kill the freak.

He was going to enjoy this.

"Oh Grimmjow, you're here as well," Szayel said sparing him a brief glance. "Yes, it is." He finished writing things on his notebook, taking advantage of the fact that everyone seemed to be frozen in shock to do so, and then closed it and turned to look at them. The smirk on his face was one that Grimmjow had seen countless times, and it irked him now as much at it had done before. "You don't believe I wasn't prepared for that eventuality, don't you, Grimmjow?"

…

TCB (Part VI)


End file.
